6 Movies to See in April 2008

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Can you believe it’s already April? It feels like New Year’s was just last week, but we’re already a quarter of the way through the year. The summer blockbusters are only a month away, and the misery that was March is behind us. April is shaping up to be a decent month theatrically, with a few okay but not stellar releases hitting theaters. If you’re in the mood for horror, The Ruins and Prom Night arrive soon, and there is something for almost every genre, from action (Street Kings) to family film (Nim’s Island) to comedy (Baby Mama). But there are only five movies I really want to see this month, and those movies are:

Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo
Yes, Harold and Kumar is number one my list. Why would I choose such a stupid, idiotic, pot-filled movie like this as my number one film to see? Why, because the original Harold and Kumar is one of the best stupid movies ever made. I don’t even know how to describe it, but it is absolutely hilarious, and I’m not even the kind of person who enjoys idiotic movies. Yes, I know that comedy sequels are rarely as good as the originals, but I’m holding out hope that this one should at least entertain me for an hour and a half.

Leatherheads
Another comedy? Yes! Comedy is my least favorite genre, believe it or not (I prefer depressing, depressing, depressing!), but the George Clooney-directed picture is my second choice for April. Unlike Harold and Kumar, though, this one is a little more of a drama-sports-comedy, as it is set several decades ago before the NFL was around. The movie promises some entertaining sports action, some witty dialogue (the exchange between Renee Zellweger and Clooney that’s shown in the previews is priceless) and John Krasinski (“The Office”) finally in a potentially good movie. Leatherheads isn’t going to blow anyone away, but it looks like it has just the right chemistry to appeal to audiences and critics alike. Too bad I don’t like Zellweger much at all.

Forbidden Kingdom, The
A couple years, I was enamored with Asian kung fu movies such as this. Honestly, the genre couldn’t go wrong. Even before that, I loved Jackie Chan movies and liked Jet Li movies. That is then; this is now. These Asian films are starting to look all the same, and with titles such as “The Forbidden Kingdom”, it’s hard to keep them all straight. The movie itself doesn’t even look all that great, but it does offer one thing that fans have been craving for years: the teaming of Jackie Chan and Jet Li. And no, not just a teaming: while it appears as though they are both good guys, they do get their fair share of fighting each other… this is every fan’s dying wish. For this alone, I will go see The Forbidden Kingdom.

88 Minutes
Another actor I’ve grown tired of over the years is Al Pacino, who, as many people believe, has grown comfortable playing the same role over and over again in varied plots. That being said, I still respect him as an actor and I never underestimate him. Even when he chooses bad movies, the movies are often not that bad, and when he picks decent movies, they tend to be on the better side of decent. 88 Minutes appears to be a rather formulaic thriller with a countdown gimmick, but that’s enough to get me into theaters. The movie doesn’t look great, but it looks like it could be entertaining, and in the month of April, that’s all I ask for.

Pathology
While I tried to keep this list to wide releases, I had to mention Pathology on here. Who knows if the movie will be any good, but judging from the red band trailer, which offered up lots of gratuitous sex, nudity and gore, I am more than just a little intrigued. My thinking is rather shallow here, but I’m okay with it. Anytime a movie can work lots of nudity into an otherwise adult horror-thriller, I’ll be there checking things out (supervising and chaperoning, you know).

Deception
I just watched a movie trailer for this thriller, and while I can’t say it blew me away, I’m certainly intrigued. At the very least, the movie stars Hugh Jackman and Ewan McGregor, two actors you should never take too lightly, as well as a bunch of beautiful women who all participate in a sex group. Of course, the secrets of the sex group boil over into some kind of murder or betrayal case, and we’re left with a naughty sex thriller. These movies generally end up being really good or really bad, and only time will tell which category this one falls into.